It matters that people have a way to use the latest findings in psychology beyond buying a pill for depression. It matters that people have a way of looking at their lives that lets them ask the big questions and determine how they want to live – and that this is supported by therapists and mental health professionals.

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Posts tagged with the category Makenna Berry

Amy Winehouse, Addiction, and the search for meaning in life

She had a brilliant, lovely and desperately sad life – but that could be said about so many others who don’t live the life of a star.
There is really no real way of knowing what was going on in Amy Winehouse’s heart. There is no real way of knowing what is going on in the hearts and minds of those caught in the cycle of addiction...

Proposed disorder provles: "Diagnosing" kids a lot easier than understanding how to help them

Being a parent is an incredible journey filled with joy, pain, confusion, hope, stress and just a flood of emotions that most new parents never imagined they would experience.
There is nothing more frightening than to witness with grief and fear your child suffer within their own minds.
Parents want to know what is happening and how to help their...

Biology isn't enough: new evidence backs up Maslow

What increases our sense of well-being? Is having our physical needs met sufficient to live the good life? These are questions with a long pedigree, but in the modern world we usually turn to Abraham Maslow and his “hierarchy of needs” for an answer.
Famously shaped like a pyramid, the “hierarchy” lays...

Why we relapse back into depression

Are anti-depressants putting people more at risk for a relapse?
Possibly. In his latest piece to be published in the journal of Frontiers of Science, evolutionary psychologist Paul Andrews’ meta-analysis suggests that patients who use anti-depressants are more susceptible to a relapse than those who do not use them.
They analyzed research...

What to disclose to clients, and when, is a perilous question

Recently, Dr. Marsha Linehan stepped forward publically as being a survivor of terrible schizophrenic episodes.
The story of her decent into the lived experience of psychological, physical and spiritual pain, and her her life saving rise out of the darkness was featured in the June 23rd issue of the New York Times.
Why did she ultimately...

Happiness is over-hyped

We all want to be happy. There is a growing body of research on happiness and the positive effects it can have on personal well-being. The self-help industry is fueled by the personal goal of being happy and the practice of positive psychology encourages the growth of personal happiness.
But beware the happiness hype. Happiness might...

The right therapist is important, but the right therapy is crucial

NPR recently aired a story on choosing the right therapist, or as they titled the piece “Shop For A Psychotherapist To Avoid the Lemons.”
Unlike prescription treatments, therapy is an intimate experience. You’ll be asked to open yourself up to someone else seeing, hearing and hopefully empathizing with your personal...

Empathy is going the way of the land-line: one more thing the young are giving up

Are college students today less likely to feel sympathy for people less fortunate than them than college students were 30 years ago?
We’d better have a talk about empathy, before it’s too late.
A meta-analyses study published in the August 2010 issue of Personality and Social Psychology Review looked at research empathy...

The stigma attached to "mental illness" is unfair, unjust ... and unchanged

Research has shown that there is little to no relationship between “mental illness” and violent behavior.
But try telling the public that.
Stereotypes are powerful, and not only is this one a thousand of years old, but it’s reinforced every night on prime time when cop shows and procedural dramas portray schizophrenic or...

The connection between hope and rehabilitation

“Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today." -- Thich Nhat Hanh
Having hope can be the one thing that will help prevent a criminal from ending up back in prison.
It seems simple but it is an idea that has yet to catch...

Prescription drug abuse is on the rise among teens. Why? Because they're prescribed so much more.

A legal high – there is a way to get one and most likely the teen in your life knows exactly how to do it and where to get their supply. Their doctor.
A recent study states that the supply is increasing.
Young adults and adolescents are being prescribed more medications to deal with “ailments” like insomnia and anxiety that...

There are record numbers of unemployed, a shrinking pool of jobs, and an increase in school failure rates. Is now really the time to shift our education system to a nurturing system that focuses on growth? Absolutely. This economic collapse presents an opportunity to transform not only our economy but how we live within it. Schools are intended to...

Mortality

Death is the great certainty of life -- and a subject we almost never talk about. How we live in its shadow, and the choices we make about the best way to live a life where time is the only non-renewable resource, is a key element of existential thought.